SSE Renewables and Equinor, the joint venture partners co-developing the 3.6GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the North Sea, have announced today that 15-year offtake Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) have been signed for the third phase of the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
Dogger Bank Wind Farm will be constructed over 130km out to sea off the north-east coast of England, where wind speeds are higher and more consistent than near to the shore. Due to its size and scale, Dogger Bank Wind Farm is being built in three consecutive 1.2GW phases; Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B and Dogger Bank C. Each phase is expected to generate around 6TWh of electricity annually, totalling 18TWh annually across all three phases – that’s enough renewable electricity to supply 5% of the UK’s demand and equivalent to powering six million UK homes.
Once the three phases are complete, which is expected by March 2026, Dogger Bank will be the largest offshore wind farm in the world.
Separate PPAs for a total of 1.2GW for Dogger Bank C have been concluded with sponsor offtakers Danske Commodities (40% share) on behalf of Equinor and SSE Energy Supply Limited (20% share) on behalf of SSE Renewables, and also with external offtakers Centrica Energy Marketing and Trading (20% share) and Shell Energy Europe Limited (20% share). The agreements are subject to Financial Close on Dogger Bank C, which is expected by the end of 2021.
The deals to buy the power generated by the third phase of the wind farm follow the conclusion of a competitive bidding process.
Danske Commodities will have trading and balancing responsibility for 480MW while Centrica Energy Marketing and Trading, Shell Energy Europe, and SSE Energy Supply will have responsibility for 240MW each of installed generation capacity across Dogger Bank C.
Steve Wilson, Dogger Bank Wind Farm’s Project Director at SSE Renewables, said:
“Today we’re celebrating yet another important milestone in the delivery of the world’s largest offshore wind farm. Concluding offtake Power Purchase Agreements with some of the leading energy trading companies for Dogger Bank C means we are well on track to reach financial close for the third phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm by the end of the year. I’m particularly pleased the agreements being announced today see existing project offtake partnerships being extended across all three phases of the wind farm as well as a new project offtake relationship being forged. Working together daily with our offtake partners we’ll bring new green energy from the world’s largest offshore wind farm to the National Grid so that we’re powering change for a net zero future for millions of UK customers.”
Halfdan Brustad, vice president for Dogger Bank at Equinor, said:
“Securing offtake agreements for Dogger Bank C is very exciting as it brings us one step closer to Financial Close for the third phase of the project. Following close behind Dogger Bank A and B, development of Dogger Bank C is progressing well and we hope to be able to reach Financial Close by the end of this year. With this, we will really start to see the magnitude of this world-leading offshore wind farm, and the benefits that a project of this size can bring both to the UK, and wider offshore wind industry.”
Dogger Bank Wind Farm secured 3.6GW of offshore wind contracts in the UK Government’s 2019 Contracts for Difference (CfD) auctions. The CfDs awarded provide overall price certainty to each phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm for a period of 15 years.
The offtake PPAs being announced today for Dogger Bank C cover a matching 15-year term from the start of the CfDs awarded to each project. The commercial power agreements provide a route to sell the green energy generated by the third phase of the wind farm into the GB electricity market when it enters commercial operation.
Finlay McCutcheon, Managing Director of Energy Portfolio Management at SSE, said:
“We are delighted to secure this landmark power purchase agreement, which will see SSE Energy Supply offtake 20% of the renewable energy generated by Dogger Bank C when it becomes fully operational from 2026. Combined with our agreements for Dogger Bank A and B, we’re proud to be bringing a massive 720MW of green electricity from the world’s largest offshore wind farm to customers across the UK, driving the transition to a net zero future.”
The ground-breaking Dogger Bank Wind Farm project is breaking world records and pioneering new technology in its delivery. It will be the first project to use GE Renewable Energy’s Haliade-X 14 MW, the first offshore wind turbine in the world to operate at 14 MW, and due to its distance from shore, the first UK High Voltage Direct Current connected wind farm.
